


Nightmares

by Evilbananas



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Anxiety Attacks, Comfort, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 12:28:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29278458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evilbananas/pseuds/Evilbananas
Summary: Roy and Riza definitely wake up from nightmares, searching for comfort that was never there before. The first chapter is about Roy and his nightmares, the second is about Riza's and how they both need help coming out of nightmares. In no way is this supposed to romanticize trauma, panic attacks, anxiety attacks or PTSD, this is meant to show how they help bring each other back from the thoughts and give ample support when needed.
Relationships: Riza Hawkeye & Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye/Roy Mustang
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

Everything happened so fast. The last thing he remembered was laying down in the uncomfortable hospital bed with the blankets pulled around him. Now though, he was launched through Truth again, seeing anything and everything for the last time. The stark white around him was a small comfort as the reels flooded his brain, overloading his mind and causing him to scream. All of that happened quite quickly and he tumbled into an all black space, soon turning into the underground tunnels he found himself in the other day. Whipping his head from side to side disoriented, he marvelled at the fact he had his sight back. A smile spread across his face within the second but immediately changed to that of horror. Every face of every Ishvalan he had ever killed appeared right beside him, growing in number more and more by the second closing in on him. In terror and selfishness he ran, ran away from the consequences of his actions that he was trying so hard to turn around and make right. It seemed to work, the faces and bodies disappeared as he ran into the familiar tunnel and large door from the Promised Day. Coming to stand on the edge of the circular room, two people pinned him down as he had to watch Riza’s throat get slit again and again before a man chucked her into the center of the room. She wasn’t moving or speaking, just slumped there on the floor in a large puddle of blood that was growing alarmingly in size.

“Riza!” He yelled, “Lieutenant! Hawkeye! Riza! Speak to me!” His words fell on deaf ears as he cried out to her, begging her to move or say something, anything to let him know she was alive. His struggles were futile as the men pinned him tightly against the ground, forcing him to watch the probably dead figure in the middle of the room bleed out. In a flash everything was gone, the men, the room, the light, everything except her. Quickly he scrambled to his feet and ran over to her, picking her up in his arms and begging her to open her eyes. “Riza! Stay with me!” He yelled frantically, brushing his hand across her cold skin and pushing the hair from her face. His eyes welled with tears, not able to accept the fact that she was gone yet. 

Riza woke up in a way she never dreamed would happen, and it frightened her if she were being honest. Roy was on the other side of the room thrashing erratically in his hospital bed, crying out for her and yelling her name loudly.

“Riza! Riza! Riza!” His voice was becoming hoarse as he let the “A” of her name drag out for long beats.

Jumping into action quickly, she stumbled slightly as she got out of bed and ran over to his, leaning over the side and taking in the sight of Roy in front of her. He was sweating and his whole body thrashed as tears streamed down his face, clearly having a terrible nightmare. “Sir! Colonel!” She yelled at him, trying to get him to wake and snap out of it. Unsurprisingly it didn’t work, switching to a different tactic she grabbed a hold of his shoulders firmly and shook him gently, “Roy! Roy!” That got his eyes to open and it made her breathe a bit easier before he continued to thrash and yell for her, the action of opening his eyes clearly no reprieve due to his blindness. Everything was still dark for him. She needed to grab his attention through his other senses, touch and hearing being the easiest ones for him right now. 

“Roy!” She yelled again to get his attention, his face turned toward the sound but he made no facial expression indicating relief. Grabbing his hands and running one of hers up and down his arm, she spoke to him soothingly trying to calm him down. “Roy, Roy I’m right here. Can you hear me? My hand is in yours and I’m also touching your arm, is that ok? Squeeze my hand if you understand.” She was thankful he couldn’t see the worry and fear that was clearly evident on her face, she didn’t want him to see her like that just like he wouldn’t want anyone to see him like this. His grip on her hand became so strong she winced slightly, not expecting him to do that although she didn’t mind, it was a sign that he was there with her and that he could hear her. “Roy, you have to breathe, let go of the air in your lungs.” He was suffocating himself, taking shallow breaths and keeping them in his lungs as they built up cutting off his oxygen. A big shuddering breath left him before he gasped in another and clumsily repeating the process. One of her hands moved to cup his face and he flinched at the unexpected contact before pressing his cheek heavily into her palm. “Good, good job Roy. Just keep breathing.” She soothed him in a way she never thought she would; they never held hands, never kissed, never hugged outside of the lines of professional contact. It’s not that she didn’t want to do all of those things, she’s dreamed about it for years, but it never occurred to her that maybe he wanted to do the same.

Before anything could really register, she felt his hands tug her into him and wrap his arms around her tightly, burying his face into the crook of her neck. She was surprised to say the least but it wasn’t unwanted, although she was quite uncomfortable as her upper body was pressed against him tightly on the bed and her feet still on the ground. Trying to save at least a shred of professionalism, she tried to kneel on the bed with him as he held her, but he felt her shift and brought her down fully to lay next to him comfortably. Her face was aflame at the position they found themselves in but he didn’t seem to care, he wanted the comfort she provided and she wanted it too. Letting her body relax, she draped an arm over his side to rub up and down his back soothingly as the other found its way into his hair, running her fingers through the slightly sweaty strands.

Shuddering breaths left him as his hands gripped her clothes tighter, pulling himself closer and burying his face into her neck further. Unashamed, he let the tears fall freely from his eyes as he sobbed, wetting her shirt and bandages to his dismay. The hand rubbing his back comforted him in a way that he’d only ever dreamed about, along with the fingers threading through his hair soothingly. He just kept crying, out of relief or sorrow he didn’t really know. The fact that she was alive and breathing right next to him, holding him, added ten years to his life. He was overjoyed that everything he saw was just a nightmare, although the events of the dream were overbearingly real, slapping him in the face with the truth of it all.

They laid in his small bed for a long time as she held him and he held her, clutching her clothes for dear life as he sobbed. Riza would let him go at his speed, cry it all out first then talk about it or not talk about it at all, either was fine with her.

“Sir you have to relax your hands, the wounds are reopening.” It wasn’t a demand but it was a firm request, she understood that he needed to touch something, anything right now to calm him down even a fraction. Although, she hated to see him hurting himself in the process. He couldn’t see that the previously white bandages were now stained red in some areas, the pain obviously not registering or he just didn’t care. Moving her hands from his back and hair, she pried them off of her shirt and made him flex his hands slowly to regain some feeling. When he was done he let out another shuddering sigh, moving his hands to lay flat against her back so his wounds wouldn’t reopen again. The redness crept up her cheeks again but she kept it at bay this time, he still needed her as a few tears still fell from his eyes.

Burying his face in her neck again, he gasped for air once before letting it out slowly in an attempt to calm himself down. Once he found the strength to speak, he tried to give her the briefest of explanations. “You-you were gone. The blood from your neck, you didn’t wake up. All of the Ishvalans, Truth, I was a coward.” All of it came out hoarse and breathy as he kept his face in her neck and pulled her closer. Her hands were in his hair again and rubbed his back up and down or in slow circles, it was wonderful and he never wanted it to end but it had to at some point. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” She asked him softly, not wanting to probe.

He just shook his head and croaked out a small, “Tomorrow.”

She took his word for it and didn’t push it any further. Hopefully by tomorrow he would have a clearer head, at least somewhat, and had time to process it all more than what he currently was going through. His crying stopped but he never took his face out of her neck, she didn’t mind but they would have to untangle themselves soon before they fell asleep like this, likely having someone walk in on them tomorrow. All of it kind of hit her though, coming together like a small puzzle in her brain; the thought of losing her meant that much to him that he would go so far into a frenzy like this. Her heart ached because it hurt, she knew the feeling of how much pain and fear shot through the body at the thought of a lost loved one. She lost him once and thinking back on it herself she didn’t think any amount of time would make her recover. Pulling him closer to her at the thought, he picked up on her sorrow and understanding. His lips pressed against the bandages at her neck right where she was cut, a soft kiss to the injury that could have changed everything for them.

“Don’t go.” He pleaded softly, subconsciously clenching his hands into her clothes again. “I don’t care if a nurse walks in and sees us or even the team tomorrow. It means nothing to me right now because I don’t think I’ll be able to fall asleep again, or relax in the slightest bit if you go back to your bed.” His admonition was soft and desperate, terrified that she would leave and the nightmares would return.

Her heart broke again at the state her Colonel was in; pleading and desperate to keep the nightmares away of her dying, or the Ishvalans, or Truth. She didn’t really know, but all she wanted was to comfort him and whisper reassuring words in his ear as he fell asleep in her arms. For once they have this opportunity and she needed to take it. “I won’t leave,” she said into his ear softly, “but you have to relax your hands or they’ll bleed again.” Immediately he obliged, her clothes weren’t so tight around her back anymore but the warmth of his palms replaced it, splayed firmly against the expanse of her back and pulling her closer.

“Promise.” He choked out.

“I promise.” She said firmly but her tone was soft, promising to not leave him now in his bed or ever. She wouldn’t cause him that pain of leaving this world and she’d try her damned hardest to keep it. Threading her fingers through his hair slowly, her other hand rubbed his back reassuringly trying to get him to finally sleep and make his brain relax. He let out a deep breath and his breathing had become more even than it had that entire night, snuggling closer into her chest and kissing her neck once more. In return she pulled the blanket up over them so they weren’t so cold, tucking it around him so he was more comfortable and felt a little safer. 

They rested comfortably on the bed in an easy silence, searching for sleep and the solace they had wanted in each other’s arms for years. Riza’s back was warm from his palms that pressed slightly into her, pulling her to him as his face rested easily on her chest. Dropping her head slightly, she pressed her lips into his hair for a few moments longer than necessary, relishing in the contact. Their legs tangled together as they slept in each other’s arms for the first time, fully clothed after a while of crying and soothing, panic and understanding. It wasn’t what either of them expected their first time in a bed together to go down, but it was comforting and well needed on both sides, creating a catalyst to find relief in each other physically more often.


	2. Broken People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riza has a nightmare and wakes up screaming as her and Roy usually do. Roy helps bring her back to the present and calm her down, doing his best to make her feel comforted.

A lot of the time they would sleep at each other’s apartments, either just to sleep or to have sex. Both enjoyed either option, seeing as it was much easier to sleep with someone else there to keep the nightmares away. Although, even wrapped up in each other’s arms it didn’t always keep them at bay.

Roy awoke with a start to the shrill screaming of Riza beside him. He sat up quickly and looked over at her, eyes still closed, face scrunched up in pain as her body thrashed. This had happened a handful of times to the both of them, one would wake up screaming and the other tried to calm them down. He was fine with his own nightmares but it broke him to see her like this. Turning his whole body to face her, he knelt next to her close enough that he could touch her but not so close as to scare her when she woke up. Her thrashing was a bit of a problem because it limited his movements, he didn’t care if he got hit he would just prefer not to. Grabbing her wrists, he held them gently but firm enough to still her movements. When her thrashing stilled somewhat, her eyes opened in alarm to the pressure around her wrists.

She looked around in confusion and alarm with wide eyes, trying to search for the source of the pressure caging her wrists. Gripping them a bit tighter and pulling them towards his chest, he tried to grab her attention because her eyes darted around without seeing; the frantic flit of her eyes gave away that she wasn’t here yet, mind still encased in the nightmare and he wanted her to recognize him and calm down.

“Hey! Hey! It’s me! Riza!” He yelled a bit loudly, trying to speak louder than her screams so she could hear him. He saw her eyes focus somewhat on him, alerted by the sound of his voice that someone else was there with her but still struggled against his grip. “It’s ok, Riza you’re safe. You’re with me. It was just a nightmare.” He continued in a more soothing and quiet tone as he let go of her wrists. They dropped to her sides as her chest heaved, eyes finally fixating on him and seeing what was around her. She might have realized where she was but that didn’t stop the panic plainly evident on her face. Alarmed at her terror, he slowly entered her personal space and gripped her shoulders, pulling her up into a sitting position.

“Riza? Can you hear me? Do you know my name?” He asked, worry lacing his tone as he held her shoulders fearing that she would fall back down, but also wanting something to register in her senses. The eyes that he was staring at started to flit around again, and her breathing picked up which made his stomach drop. Grabbing one of her hands, he put it on his own shoulder and then the other, immediately feeling the sting of her nails as she gripped him for dear life. His hands moved to cradle her face so she could focus on him again in attempt to calm her down once more.

“Riza? Can you see me? Squeeze my shoulders twice if you can.” Her breathing was still rapid and he didn’t know if she could speak quite yet, but her eyes were now focussed on him and no longer darting around the room. To his relief though, he felt her squeeze him twice and the breath he was holding in left his lungs gratefully. “That’s great,” he breathed, “When you’re ready, can you say my name?” He spoke to her gently and kept his anxiety down so as to not add to her own. They stayed sitting like that for a few beats of silence as he tensely waited for her to answer him. 

“Roy.” She choked out, still gripping his shoulders tightly and breathing ragged.

“Ok, ok great. You’re doing great Riza, can you breathe with me? Follow my lead.” His thumbs caressed her cheeks as he made her focus on her breathing. Taking in a deep breath, he made her hold it for a few seconds then release it. They did that for a few minutes until he was satisfied with the evenness of her breathing, effectively calming her down finally. “Ok Riza that’s great, you’re doing so good. Can you name three things in the room?” Roy knew how to handle panic attacks just as well as she did and it scared him that it took her so long to calm her breathing. Either way, he was glad she got here no matter the amount of time. 

Riza continued to breathe in through her nose and out through her mouth as she gripped his shoulders, grateful to have something to hold on to. Bringing in another breath, she let her eyes wander around the room again but at a much more controlled pace looking for things to answer his question. “Uh, um...I see,” she continued to make herself breathe as her eyes landed on objects around her bedroom, “I see your shirt on the floor, I-I see my dresser, and I see a lampshade.” She closed her eyes afterwards and took in another deep breath, bringing her head back to face his as she opened her eyes again.

“Perfect Riza,” He smiled as he cradled her face, “Can you name three things that you can smell?” The tension in her shoulders was dissipating somewhat as her eyes became less clouded and more focussed, relieving the nerves tangled up in his stomach.

Sniffing the air, she closed her eyes to concentrate and deduce the smells in the room. “I smell….your cologne, I smell....my shampoo, I smell….my laundry detergent.” Her eyes opened again to find his eyes smiling back at her, clearly proud of the progress she was making. That made her feel better more than he would ever know, it gave her some confidence again as she chased away the thoughts swirling around her head. 

“Awesome,” he breathed as he stared into her eyes, “Can you do one more for me?” She nodded at him as her hands loosened the grip they had on his shoulders. “Can you name three things you can feel for me?”

This question he asked was much easier than the last two but she did it nonetheless, thankful for how far he helped her get. “I feel your hands on my face, I feel your shoulders under my hands, I feel your knee against mine.” Throughout all of her answers, she never broke their gaze and a smile bloomed across his face.

“That’s wonderful Riza. You did so good.” He kissed her forehead tenderly and pulled away to look at her again. Her face was no longer scrunched up in pain like it was earlier, it was smoothed and working on becoming composed, a slight quiver in her lips. The hands on his shoulders slipped to the sides of his neck and her head fell into his chest quickly.

“Oh my God Roy.” She heaved into his chest, taking comfort in the arms that wrapped around her and finally able to break down. The sobs that came up and out of her were scary, the pain of the dream finally caught up to her and she didn’t fight it, just let all the emotions run through her system as she clung to Roy. 

The surprise he felt at the action was minimal, he was expecting it to a degree but not exactly like this. His arms wrapped around her comfortingly for a minute before he crossed his legs and pulled her into his lap properly. Once she was flush against him, his arms came around her again and rubbed up and down her back soothingly, letting her get it all out. The wetness on his neck and shoulder didn’t bother him, the only way to feel better was to do exactly as she was doing. Kissing the side of her face, he would alternate between rubbing her back and running his fingers through her hair trying to soothe her the best he could.

The sobbing slowed to a few tears falling from her eyes as she stayed buried in his neck. The sniffles that ensued were inevitable, but the faint smell of his cologne that made it through her nose calmed her. Pulling her face from his neck, she looked up at him and the look he gave her melted her heart. His eyes were soft and a small smile graced his lips, the expression full of understanding and no judgement whatsoever. They have been through this before countless times, especially where the situation was flipped. Roy burying his face in her chest trying to stifle his sobs, as her hands were the ones rubbing up and down his back soothingly. Every time this happened they looked at each other the same way,  _ understanding _ .

“Hey.” He greeted smiling softly, brushing the bangs from her eyes and bringing a lock of hair behind her ear. His hands moved to her face once more to brush away the tears that streaked down her cheeks with his thumbs, wiping away the streams tenderly. “Do you feel any better?” He asked, genuinely curious to know about her mental state right now.

“Yah.” She answered him softly, grabbing his hands on her face and looking into his forever dark eyes. His head moved towards her and she felt him press another tender kiss to her forehead before pulling her into his chest once more.

They stayed like that for a while until their breathing was even and she stopped crying. His hands rubbed her back again then moved to her thighs, caressing the soft skin that locked around his hips. She pressed a kiss into his neck and he pulled her out to look at her once more. 

“I’ll be right back ok?” He said as he looked into her eyes, holding onto her shoulders. The crestfallen look that shadowed her face broke his heart but she would appreciate what he was planning. “I’m not leaving or going anywhere, I’ll be right back I promise.” His fingers tucked another lock of hair behind her ear as he looked at her softly, the corner of his mouth pulling into a half smile. 

She was sad to leave his warm embrace, enjoying the feeling of sitting in his lap while their naked skin was pressed flush together, hands rubbing at her back too. But, if he were to get up it was for a reason so she let him move off the bed. Before he pushed her off his lap though, his lips kissed hers for a moment sweetly despite the tear trails that fell over them. She let him go reluctantly and he walked towards the bathroom in the dark. Hearing the water of her bathtub turn on, her heart warmed at his gesture which would definitely help her relax. 

After turning on the light and the water, he walked back out to her bedroom and kicked their clothes aside to make a clear path on the floor. Coming up to the edge of the bed, he kissed the top of her head before he bent down and scooped her up and into his arms bridal style, making his way towards the bathroom once more. Her head fell against his chest tiredly as her arms snaked around his neck. The water in the tub was almost to where he wanted it to be so he stood and waited, still holding her in his arms. He swayed side to side slowly and hummed quietly to no particular tune, a smile blooming across her face before she turned it to kiss his chest. 

She had come to realize that she should never doubt or underestimate Roy in any situation, politically or romantically. They easily could have gone straight to bed after he helped her out of her nightmare turned panic attack. Although, that wasn’t how Roy worked. For her especially, he would do anything and everything, even drawing a warm bath to relax her at four in the morning after a terrible nightmare. The thought of it all, and especially him, made her smile and laugh internally at his hopelessly romantic antics. The water must have reached where he wanted it to because he set her down in it and turned it off, coming to sit behind her in the tub too. She felt him scoop the warm water into his hands and pour it onto her hair, doing it repeatedly until her hair was fully saturated with water, and the warmth of it cascaded down her back pleasantly. Small hums of delight left her throat as his fingers combed through her hair and poured the warm water on her skin, causing him to grab her shampoo and squeeze some into his hand. The feeling of his fingers combing her hair earlier felt great, but it was nothing in comparison to him running his fingers across her scalp lathering the shampoo in her hair. Any tenseness that remained in her shoulders from earlier was gone the moment he started to wash her hair, letting her shoulders slump forward and a small moan leave her lips.

“Does that feel good?” He asked a bit teasingly, but mainly wanting her to relax anyway. 

“Mhm,” she hummed quietly into the space in front of her, “Thank you.” Everything he was doing was greatly appreciated at any time, but especially right now after the horrible images of earlier woke her from sleep, tumbling her into a small panic attack. Her hands were resting in between her legs but she lifted one of them to rub at his knee, in a small gesture of appreciation. He seemed to get her action and a quiet chuckle left him.

“No problem, it’s my pleasure.” His voice was right next to her ear which she wasn’t expecting but was appreciated nonetheless, especially when he dipped his head to kiss her shoulder to finalize his response. From there, the majority of the bath was enjoyed in comfortable silence as he rinsed her hair then massaged in the conditioner, making her sigh and groan little sounds again. The muscles of her body were completely relaxed now and she relished in it, in the arms of Roy and his fingers in her hair. Gently, he pulled her back to rest against his chest as he took a soapy washcloth and started to rub at her skin. She closed her eyes as she laid against his chest, almost falling asleep to the rhythmic scrubbing and warmth that enveloped her. The washcloth found its way to the insides of her thighs, wiping away the dried arousal from the night before. She would have been aroused if she weren’t so tired and emotionally drained, Roy knew that too so he wasn’t trying anything; simply trying to get her clean and more comfortable, because it was making her skin pretty uncomfortable. Everything was relaxing which was exactly what she needed for tonight, there was no small talk or meaningless conversations, just them enveloped in warmth in her bathtub. She felt his chest rumble as he started to speak though, bringing her out of her reverie.

“I know it’s late, but if you’d like to talk about what happened in the dream I’m here to listen if you want to get it off your chest.” He spoke softly and gently, not wanting to force her to speak if she didn’t want to, especially because she was so relaxed now. Although, it was bugging him a little what made her panic like that for so long.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk about it necessarily, it was just that if she started to delve into the details she didn’t know if she would be able to relax again. A sigh left her and the washcloth on her arm stilled, his heart rate picking up as well.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry, I just want you to feel ok. If you feel ok now there’s no need to talk, we can go straight to bed after we get out.” He felt as if he ruined the moment which he didn’t mean to do at all, he just wanted to make sure she was feeling better.

“No, it’s ok I know your heart is in the right place I just...It’s just…” She trailed off not really knowing where to start, everything that attacked her brain earlier in the onslaught was a lot. Although, it wasn’t stuff Roy didn’t already know about. “Well, at first I was having a nice dream. It was about you and me, we were at the bar with the rest of the squad like we usually are. You pulled me closer to you while no one was watching and kissed my cheek. It was nice.” She blushed slightly at the admonition that she dreamt about him sometimes. Shaking her head slightly, she continued, “We were all leaving and you offered to walk me home but I said no, everyone waved goodbye to each other and went our separate ways. I remember in my dream walking in the direction of my apartment and I must have been in a daze because then it switched to home. I was standing outside my father’s manor and everything was dead, the flowers, the bushes, the grass, the trees. That wasn’t a sight I haven't seen before but it was still strange to dream about. Thinking nothing of it, I walked in and my mother was dead on the floor too. I screamed and tried to run away, but my father grabbed me before I could and I was transported back to that room.” A small shudder ran through her at the thought of her father’s old study. One day, one seemingly delightful day, he asked her to join him in his study. She was elated because he never showed her attention, so easily she accepted. Although when she walked in there, he had cleared off a table for her and some rope was hanging off the side of a chair. Nothing looked very out of place but she still got a weird feeling when he asked her to lay on the table. “That room. It felt so real. I felt him push me down face first and tie my hands to the table legs. I thrashed to try and get free. It didn’t work just like it didn’t in real life, but then I felt him rip my shirt open and my back was exposed. Well, you know the rest…..” She didn’t feel like delving any deeper, not wanting to relive the fact that she felt the needle going into her skin too along with the rope burns at her wrists. Subconsciously she rubbed at her wrists as she looked away from him trying to hold back any more tears.

While he listened to her retell the nightmare that woke her up, his chest tightened and the grip he had around her waist tightened too. She turned her face away so he couldn’t see the few tears that were inevitably falling from her eyes. He felt terrible, she was so relaxed then he just had to ask what it was about. A pained look settled in his eyes as he looked at her turned head, not missing the subtle rub of her wrists too that he connected to the ropes in her nightmare. 

“Riza,” he breathed against her shoulder as he hugged her closer to his chest, “please look at me.” She hesitated for a moment and a sniffle left her before she turned, red rimming her eyes once more as a few tears trailed down her cheek. One hand splayed across her abdomen as his other held itself tightly, but not too tightly, against her heart as he looked into her eyes. “Riza,” he started again but more firmly this time, “you are not going back there. You will never go back there. You will never have to go back there. Your father can’t hurt you anymore and your mother will live in your heart forever. You are one of the strongest women I know so I know you don’t need my protection, but I am selfish and will protect you with every fiber of my being if you need me to. No one will ever come close to hurting you again and I’ll make sure of that. No one can use the flame alchemy on your back anymore and I’m sorry I had to put you through that. But now, Riza, you have been and always will be the strong, beautiful, selfless and independent person you are now. No one can hurt you anymore and you’ll never have to go through that again I swear it.” His voice was breaking a bit as the words stumbled out of his mouth. He meant every word he said as he never broke eye contact with her. A few tears escaped his own eyes at the pain she had to go through to get where she was now, but he’d never hurt her and he’d never let anyone lay a finger on her if she didn’t want them to. She was her own protector but he would be by her side regardless in case she ever needed some backup. His hands moved to grab hers and pull them towards his mouth, kissing the backs of them, then her palms, the insides of her wrists and the outsides. Her hand pulled his face towards hers when he was done, looking into his eyes with a small quiver to her lips as she pulled him towards her. The arms that fell to the side momentarily found themselves wrapping around her again in comfort, for her wellbeing and his. Their faces were wet slightly from tears as they kissed slowly, savoring the comfort they provided each other. “I’m sorry I brought it up.” He said against the column of her throat when they pulled away, arms still wrapped around her as his hands caressed her skin. 

“Don’t be.” She said softly, sniffling once as she dragged her fingers through his hair, basking in the calmness that washed over them after the storm. 

Roy seemingly came to a revelation as he gasped, pulling his face from her neck quickly. “You woke up to me holding your wrists! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean- I-I didn’t know-”

She cut him off quickly by pulling his face back into her neck and a soothing “Shhhh.” His face then rested against her shoulder blade, hanging his head guiltily. There was no way Roy could have known her nightmare involved being tied down at the wrists. “You didn’t know, there was no way you could have known. I know you were just trying to keep me from hitting you or myself, there's no reason to feel guilty.” She resumed running her fingers through his hair trying to soothe his worries as his arms grew tighter around her and pressed a kiss to her shoulder. They sat and held each other for a few minutes trying to get the other one to stop worrying, it worked partially as their eyes dried and breathing slowed.

The water was growing colder and Roy must have felt it too because he untangled himself from around her and stood up, stepping onto the bathmat outside the tub. She was about to stand up herself before Roy scooped her up again, and placed her down to stand next to him, a welcomed laugh leaving her mouth, “Roy I can get up just fine on my own.”

“I know but I don’t want you to.” He smiled at her before he leaned towards the linen cabinet to grab a large towel, unfold it, and dry her skin with it. His hands methodically traced up and down her torso to dry all of the water off, before bending down to get her legs and feet and making his way back up. The entire time he dried her she giggled and smiled, warmed by his dedication to make her feel pampered and loved. His body turned momentarily to shake out the towel a few times before bringing it back to her hair and drying that too. Just like in the bath, his fingers did their best through the towel to dry the strands and her shoulders. Grabbing a brush from the cabinet, he easily brushed through her locks as she sighed at the feeling. Carefully dragging the towel once more over her body, he deemed her properly dried before quickly doing himself. It didn’t take long because only his skin was wet, not his hair like hers. Hanging the towel up to dry before tossing it in the hamper tomorrow, he pulled the plug of the bathtub to let it drain and turned himself back towards her with a smile. “Shall we?” He asked with a grin, in response she just giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck as he scooped her up again, bringing them back to her bed. Laying her down carefully, he walked over to her dresser to grab her some new underwear and one of his spare shirts, before grabbing his boxers from the ground and putting them on. “Oh, one more thing.” He said excitedly before bounding out of the room.

She was just finishing the buttons of his shirt before he came back in with Hayate and set him on the ground. Roy leaned down to whisper something to him but she couldn’t hear, it didn’t really matter though because he pointed at her, and in no time, Hayate let out a happy yip and jumped up on the bed. Perfectly content on licking her face forever, she laughed at his kisses because it started to tickle before he stopped and nuzzled his nose into her neck. Curling up against her chest, he laid down and claimed it as his spot which she didn’t mind as Roy came to bed too and pulled the covers over them. “Thank you Roy, for everything tonight.” Without disrupting Hayate, she leaned her face to the side so she could look Roy in the eyes, sincerity dripping from her tone. Everything Roy did tonight he did not have to do but he did anyway without hesitating; it made her feel loved, loved like she never was growing up after her mother died. Roy gave her unconditional love all the time and it warmed her to her core. He didn’t say anything, just kissed her sweetly for a moment before she turned forward letting him spoon her. His lips made their way into her wet hair too and the tip of her shoulder, before he relaxed and wrapped an arm around her. Petting Hayate gently, she moved her hand to hold his that rested on her stomach.

“I love you.” She said quietly into the dark room. He always said it first so she wanted to be the first one this time.

“I love you too.” He said gently into her hair as his thumb rubbed her stomach soothingly. “Get some sleep, I’ll be right here if you need me.” Finalizing his words, he pressed his lips one last time to her cheek before laying back down and settling in for sleep.

Riza would do anything for Roy and Roy would do anything for her. She fell asleep peacefully as his steady warmth at her back made her feel safe and loved, along with Hayate at her chest snoozing easily. She held Roy’s hand until he fell asleep too, exhausted from the emotional toll tonight took on both of them. 


End file.
